Solid state light sources, such as but not limited to light emitting diodes (LEDs) and their related sources (e.g., organic LEDs (OLEDs), polymer LEDs (PLEDs), and the like) and the circuits that drive them (commonly referred to as drivers and/or driver circuits) are typically manufactured separately and electrically connected afterwards in a given lighting system. Simple and cheap drivers for series connection of solid state light sources are known that consist of a bridge rectifier and a filtering capacitor in parallel to the one or more solid state light sources, which are typically arranged in a string, as is well known in the art. Optionally, a linear resistance controller in series to the string of solid state light sources may be added. Powering light sources within a lighting system involves a number of non-trivial issues, particularly with respect to the driver component of the lighting system, such as meeting performance and safety standards.